General Atomics carried out successful first flight of the company’s production representative MQ-1C Gray Eagle ER Unmanned Aircraft Sys...
General Atomics carried out successful first flight of the company’s production representative MQ-1C Gray Eagle ER Unmanned Aircraft System from its El Mirage Flight Operations Facility in Adelanto, Calif., on October 29th.
Like the MQ-9 Predator operated by U.S. Air Force, the MQ-1C Gray Eagle is the U.S. Army version to carry out unmanned surveillance and ground attack missions.
MQ-1C Gray Eagle ER features increased payload capacity, greater range and endurance, and improved maintainability.
It has an increased Maximum Gross Takeoff Weight (MGTOW) of 4,200 pounds compared with Gray Eagle’s MGTOW of 3,600 pounds.
The incorporation of MQ-1C ER’s straight belly design allows for more than 910 pounds of internal fuel and a centerline hard point that can accommodate an optional fuel pod with an additional 450 pounds.
With endurance at more than 40 hours, the aircraft will exceed the Army’s requirement for 14 hours on station at 1,000 kilometers for all mission types.
Powering the MQ-1C ER is an upgraded Heavy Fuel Engine-180 (HFE-180) which provides increased horsepower and reliability. HFE-180 includes propulsion reliability enhancements, an improved cooling system and high-performance induction system.
The new engine began flight tests on Block 1 Gray Eagle in February 2016.
MQ-1C ER is expected to complete flight testing in June 2017, at which point it will begin a series of Army test events culminating in the program’s second Follow-on Operational Test and Evaluation in late 2017.
The first four aircraft are expected to be delivered in Q2 and Q3 2017, with an additional 15 over the course of 2018.
